And that's how I ended up here, free-falling from an airplane as the wind howled through my ears and slammed into my face like a physical force. My eyes watered from the pressure, and every breath felt thin and sharp in my lungs.
At that moment, fear filled my mind. I needed to do something. Fast.
I forced my eyes open and looked around, searching for anything, anything at all, that might help me survive. All I saw was shrapnel from the plane and other candidates tumbling through the air, their limbs flailing, their mouths open in silent or screaming terror.
Below us, an island stretched out like a waiting grave. I couldn't tell if it was Maui or some other island, but one thing was certain.
There was now a very solid surface waiting for us to crash into.
And that realization only made the fear worse.
"Okay… Henry, you need to calm down," I muttered to myself, even though I had no idea how that was supposed to help. "Falling from a plane… without any parachute… expecting to survive… that's a bit... MUCH!!!"
The words were ripped out of my mouth as a panicked yell. I wasn't the only one losing it. From the looks on the faces of the candidates around me, everyone was just as terrified. I even lost track of the masked guy.
This wasn't like the last test, where survival still felt possible.
Right now, it felt like a fantasy.
As I fell, my eyes locked with someone nearby. It was the girl who sat beside me on the plane.
I wasn't surprised she'd survived the first part. She showed a bit of skill with a gun and hadn't shown the kind of recklessness that got people killed.
Twisting my body, I adjusted my trajectory and angled toward her. The wind fought me the entire way, dragging at my clothes, threatening to spin me off course. Every movement had to be deliberate, but the wound on my shoulder didn't make it easy.
She was in full panic mode.
Her arms were wrapped around her guitar, trembling as she prayed, tears streaming down her face.
"I'm gonna die… I'm gonna die… I'm gonna die…"
This is a life or death situation. If I want to survive, I have to converse with her and come up with a plan. But damn, right now she is…
"PRETTY USELESS!!"
"HEY, WHO ARE YOU CALLING USELESS?!" she snapped back, her voice breaking as she turned toward me. More tears spilled from her eyes.
It took me a second to realize I'd said that out loud. I instantly covered my mouth with my arm in regret.
Great timing, Henry.
But there was no time to apologize. The ground was rushing toward us at terrifying speed.
I grabbed her shoulder, steadying both of us as best as I could.
"I… I… I'M S… SORRY! I NEED YOUR N… NAME?!" Really, Henry? You can't even talk to a girl in this situation? FUCK
"PAIGE LAUREN!!" she cried out, tears streaming down her face.
It's hard to understand her while she's crying, but I got the name nonetheless.
There was no time to think about that.
The ground was getting closer.
"PAIGE! D… DO YOU HAVE A WAY OUT OF THIS?!" I asked, desperation creeping into my voice.
"NO! NO! PLEASE SAVE ME!!"
Her answer, along with her panic, crushed what little hope I had left.
But I refused to accept that.
This wasn't how my story ended.
"ARE YOU SURE?!" I asked, gripping her shoulder tighter. There wasn't enough time to reach another candidate. She was my only option.
She didn't respond.
"Out of all things, why did we have to fall from this height? There were no heights at ABTA!!" she didn't calm down.
My eyes widened.
"WAIT, ABTA? PAIGE, DO YOU SEW?!" I asked, hope flickering back to life.
"WHAT? SEW? YES, BUT I ONLY LEARNED FOR 2 MONTHS!!" Though still in a panic, her expression changed at the question.
That was enough.
I looked around, forcing my brain into motion. I twisted my body, scanning every falling figure—every candidate, every corpse.
Then it hit me.
Moving as fast as I could, I angled myself toward the nearest falling body. The wind tore at me, my muscles burned as I forced myself to shift directions in midair.
My injured arm screamed in agony, but I ignored it.
Pain was a luxury I couldn't afford.
I reached the first corpse and yanked the shirt of clothing off it. Then I used him to push myself toward another. And another.
Each movement was calculated.
Each shift in direction cost me speed, strength, and precious seconds.
Paige watched as I darted through the falling bodies, grabbing whatever I could.
Shirts. Jackets. Pants. Anything made of cloth.
My arms were filled with fabric, and the wind fought me every step of the way. Several times, pieces nearly slipped from my grasp, but I tightened my hold and kept going.
My final destination was my own luggage. I rummaged through for a while till I found it—a sewing kit just the size of my palm. Miss Mary dropped it in here, saying something about saving money. I can't believe it came in handy.
By the time I returned to Paige, I had gathered dozens of clothing pieces.
It took nearly all my strength just to keep them from being torn away by the rushing air.
I turned to her, hope burning in my chest. From the short time I'd spent talking to her, I realized one thing.
She was afraid of heights.
I knew a gentle speech wouldn't work, and there was no time for comfort.
So I chose logic. And pressure.
"PAIGE! I DON'T CARE HOW YOU FEEL RIGHT NOW, NEITHER DOES THIS FALL!" I yelled, contorting my face to look as furious and intimidating as possible. "SEW THESE TOGETHER! NOW!"
Her face went blank.
Then suddenly, emotion drained from her eyes, and for a moment, I thought I saw a smile tug at her lips.
She then moved.
With surprising speed, she took my sewing kit. Her hands flew into action, grabbing pieces of clothing and stitching them together at a pace that didn't seem human.
The needle flashed through the air.
In seconds, she had connected several pieces. Then more. And more.
Her fingers moved like they had a mind of their own.
Before I could even process it, she was done.
The stitching wasn't perfect. Some parts were uneven, others loose.
But it was more than good enough.
I grabbed the finished patchwork sheet and shook it open. It spread into a massive blanket of mismatched fabrics.
Just in the first part of this exam, I'd seen a man dodge a bullet. I'd seen another guy slice through thick chairs like they were butter.
After everything I'd witnessed, I'd come to accept one thing.
This world was insane.
And sometimes, insane solutions were the only ones that worked.
Without hesitation, Paige and I grabbed opposite ends of the blanket. The wind immediately caught it. For a moment, nothing happened.
Then...
Our descent slowed. Not instantly, but noticeably, we were decelerating.
"Hahaha…" A weak laugh escaped my lips. "We're slowing down."
Relief began creeping into my chest.
But it didn't last. We were already too close to the ground. Even with the makeshift parachute, we hadn't slowed down enough to avoid a hard landing.
The beach rushed up to meet us.
THUD!!
The impact slammed the air out of my lungs. Pain shot through my body as I crashed onto the sand. For a few seconds, I couldn't move. I couldn't think. I couldn't even breathe properly.
But I was alive.
Alive.
Relief washed over me as I stared up at the sky, the blue stretching endlessly above.
"I can't believe we actually survived," I said, my voice quiet.
I turned my head to look at Paige.
She had already stood up and looked at me with a, dare I say, 'lewd' expression. She twirled her fingers relentlessly, and her eyes looked like they were on the verge of tears again. But for some reason, she had a smile on her face.
The sight shocked me.
"Eh… how did I do? I did well…"
Suddenly a loud voice echoed across the beach, cutting off Paige. Good timing too.
"ALRIGHT, SURVIVING CANDIDATES! YOU ALL ARE TO RENDEZVOUS AT THE EAST BEACH OF THE ISLAND! I'LL BE WAITING, MY STARS!"
I looked up.
Edward was descending from the sky, drifting down gently under a parachute, megaphone in hand.
Of course, he had a parachute.
It seemed the entrance exams weren't over yet. And if the pattern continued, the next trial would be even worse. But just like the rest, I planned to pass it.
No matter what happened…
My story wasn't ending here.